European Kingdoms

Germanic Tribes

Rugii
(Rugians) (Suevi)

The Rugii were an East
Germanic tribe that, in the first century AD, occupied territory
on the southern coast of the Baltic Sea, in north-western
Poland. They were
neighboured to the east, across the Vistula, by the (eastern)
Venedi,
Gepids and
Scirii (sometimes called
the Turcilingi), to the south by the
Goths,
Helveconae, and
Burgundiones, and to
the west by more tribes of the
Suevi confederation,
notably the Lemovii.

The region was first known to be inhabited by the people of the northern
European Funnelbeaker culture in the late fifth millennium BC. The island of
Rugen
and the mainland territory to the south of that was settled by the Rugii
in the first millennium AD, probably following their migration from
Norway.
In the first century, Tacitus noted that they had settled on the southern
shore of the Baltic, in what later became
Pomerania (not to be
confused with the CelticLugii,
who may have resided in the region a little earlier but who had since
migrated southwards).

Along with many of the Germanic tribes in the region, the Rugii
themselves drifted southwards in the course of the late second and
early third centuries, arriving in the Danube valley. In the late
fourth century they were conquered by the
Huns, and following
the death of Attila, they migrated to
Bohemia and Lower
Austria where they
were destroyed as a cohesive entity. Along with the
Heruli they formed
the troops of the Scirian general, Odoacer, in his creation of the
Gothic kingdom of
Italy. They also
supported the downfall of that kingdom alongside the
Ostrogoths.

The tribe's name appears to derive from an Old Norse term for rye, 'rugr',
hinting at a pastoral background which could have seen them being called the 'rye
farmers' in their Norwegian homeland. Two variations of the name were Holmrygir
(mentioned in an Old Norse Skaldic poem) and Ulmerugi (mentioned by Jordanes),
both of which can be translated as 'island Rugii', while the region called
Rogaland in south-west Norway was probably the point of origin of the tribe
before it began its migration. It is possible that, as with the
Langobards,
only a portion of the tribe migrated, perhaps selected to do
so due to overpopulation. Rogaland can be translated as 'land of the Rygir',
so for the name to survive from the first century there must have been some
continued presence of the Rugii there. An alternative theory is that the
people migrated to Norway, either from the southern Baltic coast where some
of them remained, or from the islands of
Denmark
to both the Baltic coast and Norway. Unfortunately, there is no conclusive
archaeological evidence to confirm any theory.

c.AD 50 - 150

The arrival in the eastern
Pomeranian region of
Poland of
Germanic people
in the first and second centuries AD from their homelands in
southern Sweden
and Norway has a great
impact on the Baltic population there, resulting in them moving towards
eastern Lithuania.
According to the sixth century
Byzantine historian,
Jordanes, the Goths
defeat and drive off the Rugii (whom he calls Ulmerugi) and subdue the
Vandali. The Rugii
themselves have only just arrived, migrating probably from Norway.
These Germanic immigrants form the
Willenberg
culture.

The island of Rugen was first occupied by the Rugii in the first
century AD, and some elements of the tribe remained, giving
their name to it (although this is disputed)

98

Writing around this time, the
Roman
writer Tacitus mentions the Suevi,
listing their constituent tribes which cover the larger part of
Germania. Noted for their custom of twisting their hair and binding
it up in a knot (known as the Suebian knot), the Rugii live close to the
Gutones and
Lemovii,
along the Baltic Sea. They, along with the Goths and Lemovii, carry short
stabbing swords and round shields.

c.150 - 200

Ptolemy, who writes in Greek in the mid-second century, mentions a tribe
called the Routikleioi who dwell in a land called Rhougion (Latin Rugium or
Rugia and transliterated as Rougion or Rugion). The Routikleioi are
generally associated with the Rugii while they still occupy territory on the
southern Baltic coast. However, from this time the
Goths gradually
renew their migration, moving slowly southwards. The migration could be
caused by pressure from the Baltic tribes, early segments of the later
Lithuanians,
who are expanding back into territory they had lost to the
Germanic tribes
in the first century AD. The Goths appear to draw the neighbouring
Gepids, Rugii,
and Scirii
in their wake, and it is probably at this point that the Rugii end their
association with the
Suevi
confederation.

c.200 - 350

The Rugii enter Silesia and then the Carpathians during the third century, progressing
through Galicia
to arrive on the upper River Tisza in ancient Pannonia, in what is now
modern Hungary,
just above the river's conjunction with the Danube. This is where they are
settled when the Huns arrive.

372 - 390

The Huns and
Alans arrive
in the territory north of the Danube. The region is nominally under the control of the
Ostrogoths,
and is largely peopled by their allies and subject tribes. The Hunnic arrival
triggers sudden shifts in all the tribes in the region, and the wave of
population movement and change effectively destroys the
Quadi while
the Rugii are subjugated by about 390.

c.440? - c.475

Flactitheus

Founded Rugii kingdom of Rugiland.

451

To preserve their new domains, the
Visigoths
fight on the side of Rome
to halt the advance of the Huns
at the Battle of the Catalaunian Plains, within the former territory of the
Catalauni. Atilia is aided
by his own allies, which include the
Gepids,
Ostrogoths,
Rugii, and Scirii.
Although both sides fight to a standstill, it is Attila who withdraws and it
is seen as his first major defeat, ending his reputation for invincibility.

456 - 457

In their fight for independence from the
Huns, the
Ostrogoths defeat and rout Attila's sons. They inherit control of
Pannonia as a result, and absorb elements from other, smaller tribes, such
as the Scirii.
The Rugii avoid this fate by settling
Bohemia
and Lower Austria,
to the north-west, areas that have recently been vacated by the
Marcomanni.
Their territory becomes known as the kingdom of Rugiland, but its creation
helps in the collapse of the
Roman
province of Noricum.

Fava is married to Gotin (or Giza), who is a possible cousin of Theodoric of the
Ostrogoths.
The marriage has probably strengthened the alliance between the two tribes
and could be a strong reason for the attack by the Romano-German general and
emperor, Odoacer. Another reason could be Gotin's Arianism, which the
Eastern
Roman Emperor Zeno would like to see converted to Catholicism.

Odoacer delivers a crushing defeat to the Rugii at Vienna, destroying them as a
cohesive entity. Some of their number are drawn to follow Odoacer back to
Italy,
enticed by his creation of a
Gothic
kingdom there, while the remainder appear to stay where they are, broken and
either subject to Odoacer's authority or even more closely linked to the
Ostrogoths. Fava and his wife are captured and taken to Ravenna, where they
are executed.

c.488 - c.493

Ferderuchus / Frederick

Brother. Possibly shared power with Fava.

489 - 493

At the behest of
Eastern
Roman Emperor Zeno, Theodoric
of the Ostrogoths invades
Italy and
founds a kingdom based in
Rome.
Many of the remaining Rugii
join Theodoric in his invasion and settle in self-contained communities,
refusing intermarriage with the Ostrogoths and other
Germanic peoples there.
They retain their identity until the fall of the
Ostrogothic
kingdom of Italy. The
Langobards
migrate into the former Rugii territory to fill this vacuum.

The
Rugians (or Rugs) of the Old
English
poem, Widsith, seem to be the same people as the Rugii of the first century
AD. The poem describes a Europe of about AD 500, but with earlier elements
added, and it seems to confuse the post-Hunnic
foundation of a kingdom of the Rugii in parts of
Bohemia
and Lower
Austria
with their pre-Hunnic settlement in the Danube valley (in modern
Hungary). The list of rulers in
the poem covers a span of up to a century, probably an amalgamation of all
the famous warriors known to the poem's composer. The ruler mentioned for
the Rugians, Hagena, could be an important figure during the tribe's entry into
Italy
with Theodoric.

c.500

Surviving elements of the Rugii who have remained behind in
Austria
form part of the new
Bavarii
confederation which forms in the vacuum left by the migration of the main
body of Rugians.

The Rugian name survives in a medieval principality on the island of
Rugen, close to the north-eastern coast of Germany. Elements of the
Rugii people had probably remained behind when the main body of the tribe
migrated in the late second century AD, and these
Vidivarii
(as Jordanes terms them) are eventually Slavicised, along with remnants of
other tribes to form part of the population of early
Poland.

552

The death of Totila at the Battle of Taginae allows Rome to be retaken by
Byzantium,
which governs Italy from
Ravenna.
A final defeat in battle near Mount Vesuvius in 553 means the death of the last
Ostrogothic
king and the end of their rule in Italy.
The Ostrogoths as a fighting body march out of Italy to join
other barbarian groups north of the Alps, most probably the
Bavarii
confederation, where they quickly lose their identity as a separate people.
Their Rugii supporters also disappear at this time, probably following the
Ostrogoths to join the confederation which already contains Rugii elements.
Other Rugii may remain in south-west
Norway,
giving their name to a region there.

Bavaria's mixed terrain varies from dark forests to alpine
mountains in the far south, and the region proved to be ideal
for settlement by a very mixed bag of Germanic peoples

Malesclot

Probably an invention or a mistaken connection.

1056

Edward the Exile,
the son of
Saxon
King Edmund Ironsides, an atheling (a noble of royal descent) with the
best claim to the throne after Edward, has been living in
Hungary.
The childless Edward the Confessor sees him as a possible heir to the
throne, so in 1056 he is persuaded to return, along with his two sons, but
dies in 1057 on his way back, in the hall of a
Saxon thegn. One of those sons, Edgar, presses his own claim to the
English throne in 1066.

Some texts claim that Edward the Exile has been enjoying the hospitality of
Malesclot, king of the Rugians, based on this
Germanic tribe's settlement in Lower
Austria
in the fifth century. However, this tribe has long since been absorbed into the
Bavarii
confederation of the sixth century, making this either an invention, or
perhaps confusing a minor Hungarian lord with his regional antecedents.